Page 166 of Perfect Pitch

“On it.” Within minutes, she called me back with the name of a female OB-GYN in the city.

Having my pregnancy confirmed by Dr. Middleton wasn’t a shock. It was hearing how far along I was that almost caused me to pass out while she conducted my ultrasound. My emotions are all over the place and hearing my mother’s voice makes me want to weep. “Hey, Mama. How’s LA?”

Her voice sounds confused. “We’ve been back since last night, Austyn. Didn’t Mitch tell you when we landed? I saw him texting.”

Startled, I pull my phone out, wondering if I missed a text since I passed out early. I recall Dr. Middleton’s advice when she wrote me a prescription for prenatal vitamins. “Listen to your body, Austyn. If you need sleep, get sleep. If you need food, eat.”

“And sex?” I asked her boldly.

She smiled and patted my shoulder. “You’re fine for now. We’ll reevaluate as we reach the third trimester as that’s when babies start making their mothers uncomfortable.”

I know how this is going to go. It will be a shock because we’re still so new, but I love Mitch and he loves me. Keeping Mitch and my child isn’t in question. Still, I want to tell the father-to-be before I tell its future grandmother. “I was asleep.”

Her voice relaxes. “Of course. You’ve been working so hard, darling.”

“This is what’s called striking while the iron’s hot.” I dance around the topic lightly. I can’t tell her I’m working as hard as I am, so I won't be forgotten when I take a few months away from actively performing.

Dr. Paige lectures, “And there’s something called balance.”

Just then, I trip in my boots. I whisper, “You and I are going to have a little talk. You can’t cause me to trip.”

“What’s that, Austyn? Is there someone there?”

“No, Mama. Just talking to myself.”

“Like I said, darling. Work-life balance.”

“Well, I’m about to go to negotiate some work.” Just then, a call beeps in. I glance at the caller ID and am surprised to see it’s Charlie instead of Trevor, who agreed to run me down to LLF’s law office. “Got to run, Mama. Love you.”

“Love you, too.”

I answer happily, “Hey, Charlie.”

“Hey, kid. I’m on my way” I hear noise in the background. “In fact, I’m about ten minutes out.”

“I thought Trevor was going to drive me. Want me to meet you downstairs?”

He chuckles. “Something came up for him, and no. That wouldn’t be very gentlemanly of me, now would it?”

“Oh, please. Give me a break.”

“What? I can be a gentleman.” There’s a delicate pause. “Besides, I thought we should talk first.”

“Charlie, is there something wrong?” There’s no way to hide the emotion in the banter we’re exchanging.

“I’m almost there, kid. Then we’ll talk.”

“Right.” He disconnects the call leaving me to wonder what on earth is going on. Is the reason Mitch didn’t text me because he’s hurt?

I’m pulled from my thoughts when a tiny flutter against my stomach confirms what Dr. Middleton told me. It was almost time for him or her to start making their presence known in the oldest way possible—by kicking.

A few minutes later, a knock on the door startles me out of my stupefied joy. I answer it without looking and find Charlie’s kind eyes boring into mine. Without hesitation, he asks, “A baby? I’m going to have a grand-niece or nephew?”

I take a step back, frightened. “How do you know?”

“Austyn, I keep tabs on every member of my family,” he admits without an ounce of remorse. “You pinged the second you filled your prenatal vitamin prescription.”

I gape at him. “That’s a total invasion of privacy.”

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